The Hero Framework
19 / 28The Five Types of Smarter Questions
Investigative
What's known?
Facts, causes, evidence, assumptions.
- What evidence led us to that conclusion?
- What has already been attempted?
- What data do we have?
Speculative
What if?
Possibilities and challenged constraints.
- What if we removed this constraint?
- What would a competitor do differently?
- If we redesigned this from scratch, what changes?
Productive
Now what?
Moving from thinking to execution.
- What should happen next?
- Who needs to own this?
- What could prevent us from executing?
Interpretive
So what?
Converting information into meaning.
- What does this tell us?
- What pattern are we seeing?
- How should this change our recommendation?
Subjective
What's unsaid?
Emotions, incentives, concerns, tensions.
- Who might disagree with this?
- What concerns haven't we discussed?
- What would make stakeholders resistant?
Framework: Chevallier, Dalsace & Barsoux, “The Art of Asking Smarter Questions,” Harvard Business Review, May–June 2024. Diagram original.
Week 2 — Clarity Before VelocitySPXLab.Partners
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